The last time England won a Test series in India the Premier League was still division 1, Mrs Thatcher was at war with the miners and the original Band Aid was the Christmas number 1.

England go into this series very much the underdogs with plenty of talk of a whitewash. And history dictates that this will be a very hard series for Cook’s men but there are some reasons for optimism. This is an India side on the decline, they are weaker in the Test arena than they have been for years and they definitely have some vulnerabilities that can be exploited even in their own backyard.

India's great batting line up have either retired or are on the decline. Cheteshwar Pujara has taken over the number 3 slot but he’s certainly no Rahul Dravid. He has some Dravid like qualities but he certainly isn’t as immovable, he has shown signs of being susceptible to the shorter length ball. Their main strike bowler Zaheer Khan is on his way out, he took next to no part in last year’s tour of England succumbing to injury and he had to leave the field in his recent domestic match with groin cramp. Whilst a very dangerous bowler, one false move and that’s his series over. In the batting department, Sehwag and Tendulkar are edging close to the end of their careers. No one can argue with their impressive records but recently they’ve been far from their best. Virender Sehwag has not passed 70 in a Test match for over two years and the other opener Gautam Gambhir has only passed 70 once in this time and has not scored a century since January 2010 and that was against Bangladesh.

But one of their biggest vulnerabilities lies in something more than just their lack of physical fitness and poor recent form. The Indian team could be accused of attitude issues. Certainly in their 4-0 hammering over here last year, they looked disinterested and dispassionate. There’s a real risk that they will be complacent about how easy this series will be for them and that will make them vulnerable. Duncan Fletcher (India’s coach) must find this deeply irritating being a man who seeks high levels of fitness, commitment and intensity but therein lies another dimension to this Indian team – it seems that Fletcher’s influence over the team is limited. It’s apparent when you watch India train that it’s the captain MS Dhoni who is very much in charge – in direct contrast to Flower and the England camp. India are also prone to disharmony and a lack of team spirit – something England pride themselves on (even with Kevin Pietersen in the side).

The England camp do have their own worries though. Steven Finn’s fitness is in question although he has returned to bowling in the nets and may well be fit in time for the first test. Stuart Broad has a bruised heel which when you are a fast bowler can be more of an issue than it sounds. Graeme Swann has had to return home to his sick daughter and although the England management have said that he will return in time for the first Test, it must be hard to put a time-scale on the recovery of a sick child. And whilst Panesar is a fine bowler he is very much England’s second choice spinner.

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Right attributes: Nick Compton is set to start in next week's First Test

Steven Finn is an integral part of England’s chances. He was the pick of the bowlers in England’s last tour to India this time last year and his height will give him the bounce and carry that others will not get on these pitches. In conjunction with James Anderson, hitting India’s batsmen hard from the start will be important. India’s up and coming batsmen – the replacements for Dravid and Laxman (Cheteshwar Pujara and Virat Kohli) are potentially susceptible to additional pace and bounce not having a great deal of experience facing it. England need to try and expose these vulnerabilities because when it comes to batting it won’t be easy.

India have made no secret of the fact they will be preparing turning wickets and will be trying to exploit the perceived weakness that England’s batsmen have against spin. At the beginning of the year, England were summarily undone by the Pakistani spinners in the UAE particularly Saeed Ajmal. It wasn’t pretty watching Strauss, Cook, Bell, Trott et al looking like amateurs against the turning ball. But India don’t have an Ajmal. They have good spinners but not an Ajmal. Harbajhan, Ohja, Ashwin are all quality spinners but don’t have so much of the “mystery” that undid England at the beginning of the year.

It looks likely that Somerset’s Nick Compton will make his debut to partner Cook against the new ball and whilst he is vastly experienced in the first-class game, he is untested in these conditions. But he has all the right attributes – he is patient, he is happy to leave the ball and whilst he might not be the prettiest batsman to watch he does cut and pull well and that will be important.

So whilst it will be by no means be easy, England have their best chance for years to get something out of a series in India. There’s room for cautious optimism and it has the potential to be a mouth watering series.